Fantasy is a broad term that covers one of the most diverse and beautiful genres in literature. It also contains many subgenres under it where writers explore many different worlds, magic systems, styles, and more. If you’re interested in knowing about the different subgenres of fantasy out there, here is a list of over 60 subgenres under fantasy and what they revolve around so that you can get inspiration for your next fantasy book! Now, your book can fall under MANY of these subgenres, but it will certainly fit some better than others.
New to Fantasy? Start Here → Ten Things to Know Before Writing a Fantasy Book
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1. High Fantasy
High fantasy stories are set in fictional worlds with complex world building and typically involve a struggle between good and evil. Most stories feature epic battles, heroes, intense magic systems, and more.
2. Epic Fantasy
Epic Fantasy is similar to High Fantasy but it has a grander scale, more intricate plots, many character perspectives, and long narratives that can span generations in storytelling.
3. Sword and Sorcery
Sword and Sorcery stories tend to feature strong, cunning heroes that rely on their skills to win. Magic exists, but may not be the primary role in the story. Most books in this subgenre feature action-packed adventures and quests.
4. Dark Fantasy
Dark fantasy blends the genres of fantasy with horror, exploring darker and more grim themes such as death, fear, and the darkness of human nature.
Dark Fantasy vs High Fantasy Explained
5. Grimdark Fantasy
My personal favorite, Grimdark is relatively similar to dark fantasy but is characterized by gritty stories where main characters range from antiheroes to villains. The worlds are bleak, violent, and morality is dead. Happy endings are rare. Very rare.
Check out The Fallen Age Saga, my series, to see grimdark sci-fantasy in action!
The Difference between Grimdark and Epic Fantasy — Which is Right for You?
6. Urban Fantasy
Urban fantasy takes place in a modern, urban/city setting where magic and the supernatural exist alongside humanity. Conflict typically arises after the two worlds collide.
How to Write an Amazing Urban Fantasy Book
7. Contemporary Fantasy
Similar to urban fantasy, contemporary fantasy is also set in the real world, but can occur outside of urban settings. Focuses on how magic and modern life collide and the two worlds may not be as separate as in urban fantasy.
How to Write an AMAZING Contemporary Fantasy Book!
8. Historical Fantasy
Historical fantasy blends history and major historical events, settings, etc… with magical elements. It often reimagines history with a magical twist.
9. Mythic Fantasy
Mythic fantasy draws heavily on mythology and incorporates famous mythological creatures and lore into the narrative.
Why You Should Use Mythology and History When Writing Fantasy
10. Fairy Tale Fantasy
Fairy Tale fantasy is inspired by traditional fairy tales and folklore. These often twist our familiar favorites with darker themes or more in-depth quests and more.
11. Portal Fantasy
For my anime fans, you’ll know this as Isekai, but portal fantasy is when characters from the real world are transported to a fantasy realm through some sort of portal. They are forced to survive in a new world and adjust to its rules,
12. Steampunk Fantasy
Steampunk fantasy is set in a world inspired by the Victorian-era London with steam-powered technology existing alongside the magical elements of the world. This is a very aesthetic-heavy subgenre.
How to Write an AMAZING Steampunk Book!
13. Gaslamp Fantasy
Gaslamp fantasy is similar to Steampunk fantasy but it focuses more on elements of the supernatural and has more Gothic vibes. Things are darker and more eerie than Steampunk tends to be.
14. Dieselpunk Fantasy
Diselpunk fantasy takes inspiration from the 1920s to the 1940s when technology became more reliant on diesel power. This subgenre incorporates magic and fantasy elements with this era and the world tends to feel similar to the “noir” style of that era.
15. Cyberpunk Fantasy
Cyberpunk fantasy is a subgenre that blends sci-fi with fantasy using the high-tech and low-life aesthetic of cyberpunk worlds with the supernatural and magical. Cyberpunk tends to be quite dystopian with advanced technology.
16. Science Fantasy
Science fantasy, or sci-fantasy, is a blended subgenre that combines science fiction with fantasy. Worlds show advanced technology and magic coexisting. My series falls under this subgenre.
17. Weird Fantasy
Weird fantasy blends things like the surreal and bizarre with elements of fantasy and often defies the traditional boundaries of what it means to be fantasy. It is usually labeled simply as weird fiction instead.
18. Superhero Fantasy
Superhero fantasy features modern or futuristic worlds with characters that have superhuman abilities and are heroes, grappling themes of power, responsibility, and identity.
19. Arthurian Fantasy
Arthurian fantasy takes elements from the legends of King Arthur and explores things like chivalry, magic, fate, duty, and destiny. Main characters are often heroic knights or something similar.
20. Wuxia Fantasy
Wuxia fantasy is a Chinese subgenre that causes on supernatural martial arts heroes and stories often feature epic battles with themes of justice and honor.
21. Eastern Fantasy
Eastern fantasy draws on mythology, folklore, and the culture of East Asian countries, especially Japan, China, and Korea. It often features stories of spirits, gods, and lots of martial arts and combat.
22. Celtic Fantasy
Celtic fantasy is inspired by the mythology, folklore, and culture of the Celts (Irish, Scottish, Welsh especially). It often features things like druids, fae, and ancient magic.
23. Norse Fantasy
Norse fantasy is a subgenre that draws on Norse mythology and features a lot of Norse gods like Odin and Thor and elements like the World Tree and Ragnarok.
24. Afrofuturism Fantasy
Afrofuturism fantasy often combines traditional African cultures and their history and mythology with elements of futurism and fantasy. If often explores the themes of colonialism, empowerment, and finding ones identity.
25. Desert Fantasy
Desert fantasy often takes place in desert landscapes and draws lots of inspiration from Middle Eastern and North African cultures, religions, and mythology/folklore.
26. Silkpunk Fantasy
Silkpunk fantasy is a subgenre that is inspired by East Asian technology and aesthetics and blends fantasy with things like silk and bamboo.
27. Solarpunk Fantasy
Solarpunk fantasy is a subgenre that often takes place in the future and shows a world where humanity relies on renewable energy, sustainability, and has harmonized with nature. Most of these stories tend to fall under utopian fiction.
28. Biopunk Fantasy
Biopunk fantasy focuses heavily on the combination of biology and genetics with fantasy. It’s often set in dystopian worlds and has a heavy emphasis on the concepts of genetic engineering and biology.
29. Time Travel Fantasy
Time travel fantasy is a subgenre that includes characters that travel through time, which is often fueled by magic.
30. Parallel Universe Fantasy
Parallel universe fantasy often explores the idea of the existence of alternate realities and dimensions that characters can travel between. Each world may have different rules, histories, magic systems, etc…
31. Fantasy of Manners
Fantasy of Manners is a subgenre that weaves magic and the fantastical with urban settings and explores intricacies of court life and social interactions. They often tend to be more comical, but are not necessarily comedies.
32. Low Fantasy
Low fantasy is set in a world that is similar to Earth and features minimal magical or fantastical elements, focusing more on gritty and realistic stories. However, magical events intrude into this typically normal world.
33. Heroic Fantasy
Heroic fantasy revolves around the hero’s journey and features protagonists that must overcome significant challenges. Most stories under this subgenre deal with ideas of destiny and personal growth.
34. Military Fantasy
Military fantasy focuses heavily on warfare, strategy, and the lives of soldiers in a fantasy setting. These stories tend to explore the impact of war on society and on the characters.
Book 2 of my series definitely falls under military fantasy.
35. Religious Fantasy
Religious fantasy is a subgenre that deals with the themes of faith, the divine, and influences of religion on society. Religion is central to the narrative.
36. Metaphysical Fantasy
Metaphysical fantasy deals mostly with philosophical questions and introspection about reality, existence, and what it means to be conscious.
37. Visionary Fantasy
Visionary fantasy explores utopian/idealistic visions of what the future looks like with a focus on spiritual growth, enlightenment, and the idea of a better world.
38. Allegorical Fantasy
Allegorical fantasy tends to use fantasy elements to convey deeper messages about morality, philosophy, and politics.
39. Philosophical Fantasy
Philosophical fantasy integrates complex philosophical ideas into the overall narrative and challenges readers to ponder what reality and existence are like.
40. Existential Fantasy
Existential fantasy tends to explore themes of meaning, existence, and what humanity is.
41. Psychological Fantasy
Psychological fantasy delves into the mind and often explores mental illnesses, dreams and more through the lens of fantasy.
42. Surreal Fantasy
Surreal fantasy blurs the lines between reality and the absurd and often features a disjointed narrative and unconventional storytelling techniques.
43. Magical Realism
Magical realism is a subgerne that shows a realistic world where there are subtle magical elements that are considered normal by the characters. The magic is meant to serve as a metaphor in the story for something deeper.
Magical Realism presents a realistic world with subtle, magical elements that are treated as normal by the characters. The magic often serves as a metaphor for deeper truths.
44. Gothic Fantasy
Gothic fantasy combines elements of horror, romance, and the supernatural with a dark atmosphere. These stories tend to feature tragic love and haunted locations, with an emphasis on a European aesthetic.
45. Horror Fantasy
Horror fantasy blends the supernatural and fantasy world with horror elements and often involves things like curses and monsters.
46. Paranormal Fantasy
Paranormal fantasy draws on the interactions of the paranormal world (vampires, ghosts, werewolves, etc…) with the real world.
47. Vampire Fantasy
Vampire fantasy focuses on central characters being vampires.
48. Werewolf Fantasy
Werewolf fantasy explores fantasy with central characters being werewolves.
49. Ghost Fantasy
Ghost fantasy features ghosts or spirits of some type as central characters or important plot elements. It often explores things like hauntings and themes of the afterlife.
50. Witch Fantasy
Witch fantasy involves stories about witches and the world around them, as well as the consequences of magic and conflicts they face.
51. Shapeshifter Fantasy
Shapeshifter fantasy features shapeshifting characters and stories under this involve identity and transformation and finding oneself. My series has elements of this in it.
52. Dragon Fantasy
Dragon fantasy revolves around dragons and their role in a story either as protagonists, mentors, or antagonists.
53. Mermaid Fantasy
Mermaid fantasy features mermaids and aquatic beings and explores the themes of transformation and identity. It also explores the depths of the sea and its complexity.
54. Fae Fantasy
Fae Fantasy focuses on the interactions between humans and fae. This has been a very popular trend recently thanks to books like A Court of Thorns and Roses.
55. Elemental Magic Fantasy
Elemental Magic fantasy revolves around characters who can control elements (earth, water, fire, air, etc…) and explores the consequences of this sort of power. Many magic systems I create are based around this.
56. Magitech Fantasy
Magitech fantasy blends magic and technology, with magic serving as the foundation for advanced technological developments. This subgenre deals heavily with the interactions between magic and science. My series has lots of this involved in it, especially when it relates to the aliens in the story.
57. Alchemy Fantasy
Alchemy Fantasy deals with the practices of alchemy, the transformation of matter, the pursuit of knowledge, and the quest for things like immortality.
58. Rune Magic Fantasy
Rune Magic fantasy features characters who use runes or some type of ancient symbol to cast spells and unlock powers. Many of these stories delve into ancient lore.
59. Necromancy Fantasy
Necromancy fantasy revolves around characters who have the power to raise and control the dead, often exploring the ideas of life, death, and what it means to perform necromancy. My current WIP deals heavily with this.
60. Animism Fantasy
Animism fantasy is based on the idea that the natural world contains spiritual essences and these stories tend to explore the interconnectedness of all living things.
61. Spirit World Fantasy
Spirit world fantasy explores the existence of spirit worlds inhabited by supernatural entities or spirits and characters that can traverse the real world and the spirit world.
61. Psychic Fantasy
Psychic fantasy focuses on characters that have psychic abilities like telepathy and telekinesis as well as the ethics of these powers.
62. Coming-of-Age Fantasy
Coming of age fantasy focuses on the growth of a protagonist from youth to adulthood and how they change overtime. It involves things like personal growth and self-discovery.
63. Island Fantasy
Island fantasy often takes place on remote islands with isolated communities, featuring strange creatures and the challenges of being cut off from the rest of the world.
64. Egyptian Mythology Fantasy
Egyptian mythology fantasy draws upon the myths and legends of ancient Egypt, featuring gods, pharaohs, and more.
65. Mesoamerican Mythology Fantasy
Mesoamerican mythology fantasy features myths and legends from ancient civilizations like the Aztec and the Maya, featuring gods and rituals and lost civilizations.
66. Indian Mythology Fantasy
Indian mythology fantasy deals with Indian myths, legends, stories and more and features gods, demons, and other concepts present in Indian folklore.
67. Japanese Mythology Fantasy
Japanese mythology fantasy draws upon Japanese myth and folklore, often featuring things like spirits and monsters as well as the natural world.
68. African Mythology Fantasy
African mythology fantasy explores myths and legends of African cultures and often features concepts found in African traditional religions.
69. Native American Mythology Fantasy
Native American mythology fantasy draws upon myths and legends from Native culture, often featuring things like trickster figures, creation stories, and the relationship between humanity and nature.
70. Slavic Mythology Fantasy
Slavic mythology fantasy draws upon myths and folklore from Slavic culture, featuring witches, spirits, and other Eastern European features. The Witcher is a perfect example of this.
71. Pirate Fantasy
Pirate fantasy features characters that are pirates and involves fantasy elements in their lives or interactions.
Conclusion
Fantasy includes so many different subgenres out there and you can choose to focus on many of these, combine them, or create your own sort of hybrid from different concepts of your own. There are so many other fantasy subgenres out there, but these are 70 that should help inspire you with your next story.
Before you head on out, be sure to check out my series, The Fallen Age Saga, and don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter to get updates on all my latest WIPs, book releases, posts, and more!